Episode 169 – Sankoré, Civolution, and Timber Town

Why not buy a board game from our sponsors Kienda: kienda.co.uk/polyhedroncollider In Episode 169 of the Polyhedron Collider Cast, we're back to the normal format with a jam-packed episode full of cardboard strategy, wooden meeples, and the occasional alcahol related tangent. We've got three fresh games on the table—each offering a different flavour of thinky goodness—and we're ready to break them down. Sankoré: The Pride of Mansa Musa We dive into this beautiful and brain-burning game of knowledge, trade, and influence. Set in medieval Timbuktu, Sankoré blends economic planning with cultural prestige—so naturally, we try to out-teach each other. Civolution What happens when you blend civilisation building with a modular tech tree and evolving asymmetry? Civolution aims to answer that. We dig into the mechanisms, the innovation, and whether it actually feels like building a civilisation. Timber Town Time to grab your axe and get to work! This charming, engine-building game about lumberjacks and town planning took us by surprise. It's a lot deeper than it looks—and yes, we make at least three wood-related puns. So grab a brew, get comfy, and join us for another episode of tabletop talk and trite tangents. 🎧 Don't forget to join our community on [Discord] and let us know what you think of the games—or tell us what we missed! https://discord.gg/RtC25Vf2qA Podcast Contents 00:02:11 Sankoré: The Pride of Mansa Musa 00:24:50 Civolution 00:45:27 Timber Town 00:54:47 Questions for the mailbag ⭐Show Sponsor: Kienda When you sign up to an account with Kienda use this link to bag yourself a wee discount and help support the show.  Let's face it, you were going to buy a board game anyway 😉 👥Follow Us on Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PolyhedronCollider Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/polyhedroncollider Threads: https://www.threads.net/@polyhedroncollider 🎧The latest episode is available to listen on the following pod-cast services: iTunes -  https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-polyhedron-collider-cast/id1087398150  Spotify -  https://open.spotify.com/show/1rAPFNc5rE6JURNYakNzA3  Amazon - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/eba45bc5-0a1d-493c-bbbd-024fe5714147/the-polyhedron-collider-cast YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@polyhedroncollider  Player FM -  https://player.fm/series/the-polyhedron-collider-cast  Podbay -  http://podbay.fm/show/1087398150  Or you can add the http://polyhedroncollider.libsyn.com/rss Polyhedron Collider Cast RSS feed to your favourite podcast player  Intro and Outro Music: "Ouroboros" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/